• To understand how increases in the cost of living have affected nursing students
• To appreciate the effects of financial stress on students’ mental health
• To consider the practical issues that may increase financial stress for students such as the cost of travelling to practice placements
The sharp increase in the cost of living in the UK over the past few years has affected all populations, including higher education students. Many higher education students, including nursing students, are experiencing financial difficulties and concerns, which adversely affect their mental health and can cause them to consider leaving their course. This article reports the findings of an online survey undertaken in one university in Glasgow, Scotland, that aimed to explore the effects of financial stress on second and third-year nursing students. Most respondents had experienced financial worries since starting their preregistration nursing degree programme; many were concerned about the cost of living, and financial worries adversely affected their academic performance and clinical placements. The authors suggest there is a need for a collaborative partnership between universities and practice placement areas to adopt a student-centred approach to identifying solutions to nursing students’ financial concerns as well as a review of the available funding for this cohort.
Nursing Standard. doi: 10.7748/ns.2025.e12405
Peer reviewThis article has been subject to external double-blind peer review and checked for plagiarism using automated software
Correspondence Conflict of interestNone declared
Molesworth M, Davis K, Rickards-Hill D et al (2025) Exploring the effects of financial stress on undergraduate nursing students in Scotland. Nursing Standard. doi: 10.7748/ns.2025.e12405
AcknowledgmentsThe authors would like to thank John H McKendrick and Elena Magli from the Scottish Poverty and Inequality Research Unit at Glasgow Caledonian University for their support with data analysis
Published online: 06 January 2025
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